Reversing camera (or: how much time have I got spare?)

Xaccers · Post by **Xaccers** » 02 Nov 2008, 02:40

As some of you may have picked up, I'm an airsofter (best way to describe airsoft is like paintball but a lot more fun, a lot less messy, and a heck of a lot less painful!) and one of my pet projects with it is a camera to record the skirmishes as they take place.
My first attempt (GunCam Mk1) sort of worked, with the help of Jim building a 5v regulator to run from a 12v battery, in principle everything was fine. In reality, the reciever for the wireless camera would detune itself in about 15 seconds (being 1.2GHz), and the hard drive recorder caddy blew itself up (though my own attempts to make a 5v power supply actually sent it to it's early grave).

Eager to improve on the prototype and make one that actually does the trick.
So off to ebay I trotted and picked up two wireless 12v cameras with IR leds, this time 2.4GHz, which has set channels and will work with a 12v reciever I already have, a new hard drive recorder caddy, and a 4" portable LCD tv.

GunCam Mk2 aside, I also have CarCam Mk1 and ReversingCam Mk1 bouncing through my head.

CarCam Mk1 will be mounted on the front towing eye, running off the feed for the front fog lights (which Cassy no longer has thanks to some oik ripping off her bumper earlier in the year). Easily removable to be used as GunCam Mk2 when needed.

ReversingCam Mk1 will be mounted on the back, fed from the reverse light feed. Can you see my cunning plan?
The 4" TV fits snuggly and quite securely in front of the centre air vents and runs on 12v.
I was thinking of wiring it's power supply via a relay on the reverse light, so it comes on automatically with the reverse camera when reverse gear is selected.

I was thinking of doing the same with the front fog light feed.
Also, the reciever has a 4 way switch for the 4 different 2.4GHz channels.
Now if I removed the switch and wired the contacts for the two channels used by the cameras to relays, so that when the front fog lights are selected the screen and front camera come on and the reciever is switched to the front camera channel, and when the reverse light is selected the screen and rear camera come on and the reciever is switched to the rear camera channel.

jgra1 · Post by **jgra1** » 02 Nov 2008, 21:30

hi Xac

Not really anyhelp but I have 2 cameras to add to my old camper van, one will be on the roof looking back, hopefully as a reverse but also rear view camera, the other one will face forwards as a 'bridgecam' as the van is 11 foot high and has roofboxes on,, so if I ever drive it, seeing ahead will be useful

Also, I want to make a simple satellite dish lifter on the roof, and bridgecam can keep an eye on the dish and where it;s pointed.. the simple LCD I have will take the 2 AV inputs and also is a TV

One camera is wired the other is wireless, but both are cheap - maybe too cheap..

more soon..
John

dnsey · Post by **dnsey** » 06 Nov 2008, 20:15

What HD recorder are you using? I'm looking for something like that for a project!

jgra1 · Post by **jgra1** » 07 Nov 2008, 09:38

Xac I am lost...

High def or Hardisc? where did I say I was recording anything?

It was a very late night

MJM · Post by **MJM** » 07 Nov 2008, 12:17

Xac, the only clash which I can see in your plan is what happens if you have the front camera on and select reverse? Will the camera cope with two inputs, or will it not know whether it (you) are coming or going? You may have to put another relay in the camera circuit (DPCO) and power it from either the front or the back, to give one priority.

Xaccers · Post by **Xaccers** » 07 Nov 2008, 15:20

I've been trying to find the hard drive recorder enclosure on ebay without joy, I know they're there, but finding the right keywords is being a pain, will keep looking and post a link.
Basically it takes a 2.5" laptop IDE hard drive like most usb enclosures, but has extra circuitry to take video input (AVI). It also has video playback, along with jpeg and mp3 etc.
Think it's around £50 inc postage (then you need the hard drive).
I had hoped to use a CF card to IDE converter, but due to the IDE connector being flat on the board the solder on the pins on the converter prevent it fitting, and the IDE extender cable either is duff or the enclosure just can't handle the converter.

The cameras are on different channels, and the reciever has a 4 way switch to pick the channel you want.
So, if I replace the 4 way switch with relays I can have it automatically switch to the rear channel when reverse is selected.
Either the front foglights being turned on (providing power to the front camera) or selecting reverse will switch 12v to the TV, turning it on.
That way I won't have to manually turn it on, nor drive along watching snow when the cameras aren't in use.